


Vanguard: Legends, Hero's and Antics

by Warden935



Category: Galaxy's Edge - Jason Anspach & Nick Cole
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-21
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2020-12-27 08:57:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21116132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warden935/pseuds/Warden935
Summary: This is the start of a new series that, is open to all members of the Vanguard. If you have any questions then please ask them in our chat or DM them to me. I hope we all can get a good series going. For any non-legionnaire who finds this go read Galaxy's edge By Jason Anspach and Nick Cole.





	1. Camouflage

My name is Marcus Foster. This story has been buried deep within my mind for over forty years. As I am not much longer for this world, someone just might find value in it before I rejoin my fallen comrades in the next world; it takes place during the War for Psydon. 

I, a simple Republic Army soldier, a mere Private First Class; encountered either an enigma or Oba's divine will on that jungle hellscape of a planet called Psydon. It was on one sweltering and humid day that I was on a Search and Destroy patrol with the rest of my platoon. 

It was when the reddish-orange light of dusk that vicious dogmen called the Doro opened up with wild blaster fire seemingly out of nowhere from the dense jungle. They were lobbing frag grenades into our exposed lines and firing man-portable rocket launchers likely stolen from a republic supply vehicle they so enjoyed ambushing. I was forced to run as fragger after fragger were thrown at my position. Finding myself farther and farther from my buddies. 

Soon I was so turned around I couldn't even find where the original battle site was, I hadn’t even remembered how long I was running for. We had no cover to speak of and were so totally caught off-guard the only option in my mind was to completely fall back, it seemed no one else had figured the same as I was alone under the eerily quiet jungle canopy. Seeing no other immediate option I just knelt behind a fallen tree and just prayed to Oba that my death was swift because I heard stories about what the dogs did with prisoners. As I was examining my surroundings, a twig snapped behind me, and I spun around as quick as I could, leveling my NS-2’s sights on the biggest legionnaire I have ever seen in my life.  
His body language was calm, and he held one hand up. he began taking off his helmet; or “bucket” as The Legion called them. Behind the helmet was a smile and friendly eyes, he tucked his bucket under one arm, cradling his N-4 in the other. Then the big leej spoke, "I'm glad you waited. What's your name, basic?" he said in a cool, but confident voice.

"P.F.C Marcus Foster, and holy sket leej; you scared the hell out of me! Where did you come from? Oh, and what's yours?" I had to quickly add the last part because he really did scare the hell out of me. "You can call me Camouflage. 81st legion Vanguard Company." he stated with pride. Then he added, "Alright, if the dogs want to tangle, they're going to have two blasters to dodge. Are you with me, kid?" he said as he threw his helmet back on changing his visage from a man into that of an ancient warrior. 

"Yeah let's do this, I'm ready." Even though I was somewhat shaking in my boots, not sure who I was more afraid of, the dogmen that he could hear rustling in the underbrush or this hulking warrior beside him. "Good because here they come, KTF!" He shouted as a pack of doros ran full tilt right into our sights. 

We fought doro after doro, each one just being cut down by our combined fire. When they returned fire, bolts were sizzling by my head head and face; I could feel their heat singe my hair the bolts was so close. Camouflage just stood in place like a statue, as if he did not care if he was going to be shot; or perhaps simply daring the dogmen to try to put him down. His aim was a sight to behold, two shots to center mass on every approaching doro and they collapsed in a heap amongst the coiling vines and verdant grasses. 

The strange part about that legionnaire is, he didn't get hit once that I saw; or maybe he did, but he didn't show it, I still don't know. Like a holy warrior that shepherded the souls of the damned to the afterlife but was immune to its call. As the battle raged, we just kept killing, hell during a reload, he looked at me and said, "You can have my permission to shout KTF. you're still a basic but just for tonight, you're a Legionnaire, so come on leej. KTF!"

I stared at him when he said that, and a tear came to my eye. This man, this lone legionnaire came all the way to help one regular Republic Army trooper, without any support and likely without orders to do so. and he had just called me a legionnaire like he was; the one percent of the one percent of the one percent. That moment will always be the most incredible event of my life. I snapped back to focus just as a pack of five dogmen approached the right flank, firing blindly from the hip as they charged. I flipped the selector on my weapon to full-auto, and at the top of my lungs I did what the legionnaire told me to do, I shouted, "KTF!" killing all five doros in a hail of bolts that depleted an entire charge-pack.

As the sun finally eclipsed the horizon, shrouding the vibrant colors of plants to shades of dull grays and blues, the firefight started to taper off, infrequent and inaccurate blaster fire still passed our position but nowhere near what was the carnage that had us so pinned down hours ago. "Alright, let's take a chance and fall back to the river. Do you know where that is?" Camouflage asked as he took a knee for the first time behind cover. "Yeah, I remember." I said. My platoon had crossed it hours ago. "Well get moving; I’ll give them some suppressing fire, maybe kill a couple more so you can retreat. Then I’ll be right behind you be right behind you" I opened my mouth to protest; I didn’t want to leave the man who saved my life alone, but he held up his hand and barked out, "NOW LEEJ GET MOVING!" as he popped out of cover and began his two round bursts into exposed doros.

I did as he ordered; bounding over another fallen tree and ran as fast as I could in the direction I was confident the river dividing Republic and Doro controlled zones in this sector was. I don't know really how long I ran, or even how far but I did. The sounds of blaster fire behind me growing ever fainter as I darted through the jungle. I finally reached the edge of the narrow river when Camouflage just appeared out of nowhere again. I jumped, saying, "how in Oba's name do you do that." As if the jungle itself rematerialized him from base components. He chuckled and said, "My callsign wouldn't be Camouflage if I couldn't blend in. Now come on, let's get out of here." 

As we started crossing the river side by side, a blaster bolt came out of the forest behind us with my name on it. I didn’t see it but I heard it as my mind told me this is where I would die; floating face-down into the murky depths of this alien world, but I never felt its heat or the cold embrace of the void. Camouflage had simply outstretched his arm behind me, he had just absorbed the bolt with his gauntlet like a star Scene Ball catcher. When my mind finally grasped what had just happened, I was shocked to see a reaction time that quick. He pushed me forward and I stumbled into the embankment of the republic side of the river while returned fire. Luckily, we were very close to Republic lines, so the dogs didn't chase us as we yet again disappeared into the darkness of the jungle.

Minutes later we silently emerged from the embrace of the jungle onto a dirt road, I saw my firebase’s flag out in the distance behind duracrete walls. As we got closer, Camouflage who was covering our six o’clock slowed his pace then stopped. It took a few moments to realize he was no longer following me towards the firebase. "Hey, what's wrong? Come on we’re home free."

Camouflage just dipped his head examining his rifle, then looked up and said, "Not for me, no. I'm going back out there, still more dogs to put down. You, on the other hand have a family and a life to look forward to.” He said with conviction. “Go home, happy to have had the opportunity to fight by your side, kid." he gave a two-fingered salute and dipped back into the jungle. 

I wanted to go after him, I wanted to be by his side. Without him I’d be dead or worse; we spilled blood together and he treated me like one of his legionnaires, not as a sub-standard basic, but as a Leej. My entire body ached, what was left of my uniform clung to my body with blood, river muck, and sweat but some primal part of me still wanted to follow that man into the jungle and do what the Legion did; to KTF and to, “Always make ‘em pay.” Some more rational part of my mind knew I should do what he told me to do, I’d only get in his way.  
So that's what I did. I reluctantly turned around and went to the bases main gate, only looking back once as if the man whose callsign of, “Camouflage” would somehow appear out of thin air once more. As I approached, one of my squad members came sprinting towards me, laughing, shouting, "Foster is back!" as the crews serving the N-50s on the walls stood down.  
I recognized my squadmate; his name was Jim, we’d known eachother since boot camp. When he got close he damn near knocked my battered body down as he wrapped me in a bear hug. Grunting from the force of the impact, "Alright, alright Jim I'm back don't worry, put me down man I can’t breathe!" I managed to wheeze out through my compressed diaphragm.  
"Yeah, well, you're lucky because the LT was rejecting all efforts to go out and search for one guy, the whole squad volunteered but he threatened is with the stockade if we kept questioning his orders. Sketting point.” He added through gritted teeth as we crossed the wire and into the base’s interior while men that survived our ambush clapped me on the shoulder as they changed posts. “Anyway, I'm sure that bastard is gonna want to talk to you and figure out where you have been, you gotta tell me story after you get some rack time.” as he began to run off he stopped and shouted back, “Come find me when you're done; a medical SLIC just dropped off something crazy."

I had no idea at the time what a medical SLIC would "drop off" here; we were stationed on the front lines but if someone ordered a casevac from out in enemy territory, they’d usually be sent further back to a proper field hospital for triage, but I had to speak to the lieutenant. As I neared the H.Q. I saw him; a gangly man with a pristine uniform as if we had not just been under fire a few hours ago. He was talking with one of the other officers at the base. I didn’t recognize the man, he must have been with another platoon. The lieutenant glanced over at me, waved me over as he stepped inside his tent. When I entered, I saluted and stood at attention "Sir, P.F.C Marcus Foster, reporting in Sir." I said, I must have looked worse than I imagined because the Lt.’s nose twitched as if he smelled something dead.

"One moment, son, I want to get a medic in here to see if you have any injuries. *sigh* I have no idea why you didn't do that in the first place, but here you are." The guy was not only a full-of-himself and stuck up point like the rest of them; but he was also an idiot because if I was injured, I would have gone straight to the medics, I may have looked like sket but besides some aching muscles I was fine. Reluctantly, I did as I was told and waited; still at attention of course, the lieutenant loved feeling superior to the rest of us grunts, maybe he was still jaded he didn’t have the connections in the House of Reason to be appointed to the Legion, or even the Marines; but rather simply the repub army.

When the medic arrived, I waited to be cleared and confirm what I already knew. The Lt. finally allowed me to be at ease and ordered me to report about why I had, “Been on vacation.” after the ambush by the doro. I relayed the whole story; the lone Legionnaire, the firefight, the retreat, and why I returned alone. As I finished the Lt., just stared at me, mouth agape. The medic just swallowed hard and cautiously removed himself from the tent. I looked around quizzically, wondering what got everyone so spooked. The Lt. shook off the look of anxiety and said, "You're dismissed for now. I have to take this up with the chain of command." the Lt. said almost out of breath; he also looked as pale as a ghost. He glanced at me for one more second and then stormed out of the tent. Confused, I left the tent myself and was approached by the same medic from before. 

"Hey, your name is Foster, right?" the medic inquired. "Yeah, why?" his question got me a little concerned. "Well, uh, you should probably follow me." He said with the same frantic anxiety that the Lt. had shown. "Alright…” I drew out my response as I followed him, “Where are we going?" I asked with more unease. I was just a P.F.C so this amount of attention was highly irregular. "Casualties tent.” He spat out still with that same anxious tone. “We had better hurry, a dropship is coming down from orbit soon to pick up the dead." 

We started walking with a purpose over to the tent when he threw open the flap and had me enter, he followed. I saw rows of cots with the wounded men that survived our ambush, in the far corner of the room was yet another cot, but this one had a privacy screen obscuring the occupant.  
The medic briskly past me and beckoned me to join him at the screen. He opened it with shaky hands, very uncommon for someone in the medical corps. Inside was the body of a very large man, clad from chest to toe in his armor; a Legionnaire with his bucket beside him. The medic stepped astride of armored hulk lying lifelessly on the cot. I stood rigid as if I was struck by a bolt through my lungs. The fatigue of the day vanishing, replaced at first by recognition, then horror. I approached the body and saw Camouflage. His armor was torn apart; scorch marks riddled his chestplate, two of the fingers on his right hand were gone, a blackened hole in his midsection encrusted with red blood. I looked as a new wave of nausea tried to bubble out of my roiling stomach and moisture gathered at the edges of my vision to the left side of his chest plate. There proudly emblazoned was a two-headed eagle, shield on its chest, and gripped in both of its talons were two swords, the emblem was the only piece of the armor that was unscathed.

"You might be telling the truth, but judging by your reaction, you know that this is the Legionnaire designated; “Camouflage”. Before he died, he sent out a wide band transmission that we intercepted that included his location. He said “Milites Armatae Aeternum.'" the medic said gravely. 

He looked at me and said, "It’s some ancient dialect supposedly coming from fabled Earth” he commented. “It means; Ever the Soldier's Underarms." I still just stood there, not daring to take my eyes off the man who called me a fellow leej after he saved my life. Breaking the silence the medic said finally, "Before his comm went out, Camouflage said his only wish was to save a young soldier caught in barrage. And well, I guess he got his wish. I'll give you a few minutes alone." 

All the strength I had in my body left me, I collapsed to the floor still staring at Camouflage. My mind replaying the events of just last night. Some of the feats he did were almost superhuman even for a legionnaire. I thought back to just before we went our separate ways, he knew I had a family back home, I didn't tell Camouflage that, and I didn’t even know his real name.  
A few days later, I was sent home. Not as a psychological causality, but more as an, “I have been through a traumatic experience.” and the least the army thought they could do was put me on some boring monitoring base for the rest of my service. After forty years, I still have no idea what truly got me out of that jungle. It could have been the real legionnaire or just his ghost, but one thing is for sure he got me out of that hell; and I will never forget that. Yeah, even if my mind was playing tricks on me that day, I was awfully glad to see that big leej and to the men of Vanguard Company.


	2. Three Little Grizzlies

**Vanguard Company - Legion Base Ortega, Planet Cononga - 3 years after Alistaar**

Captain Ruiz sat in his office, still in his armor from the morning full gear PT, trying to catch up on all the reports Major Gates failed to get done, as usual. “Sometimes I wish I went enlisted.” he said, looking at the stacks of datapads he still had yet to work on. 

“Sir.” said Paladin, standing at attention in the doorway, holding a datapad in his left hand as he saluted with his right. 

Templar stood up and saluted back. “Oh great, you got more reports for me to work on, Lieutenant?” he said in a sarcastic voice while sitting back in his chair. 

“No, sir.” said Paladin as he handed Templar the datapad. “This is the list of new recruits coming in today.” 

“Is this correct?” asked Templar, looking up at Paladin from the datapad. 

“Yes, sir. I thought you might like to go meet the new recruits to see this all play out.” replied Paladin. 

“Well then, let’s take a walk. I gotta get out of this stuffy office anyways.” said Templar as he grabbed his helmet and sword. 

“Sir, why do you gotta carry around that relic all the time?” said Paladin, looking at Templar’s sword as if it was a joke. 

“Why, Lieutenant. This is my family sword, the heirloom of my people. I must wear it with honor.” said Templar, pretending to be hurt before getting a grin on his face. “And besides, we gotta break in the new recruits.” 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

The two troops transports touched down on the landing pad while a few leejes stood by to welcome the new recruits. Templar and Paladin walked up right as the ramps to the ships opened up. 

Sergeant Futrell ran up and saluted Templar at the base of the ramp. After the captain returned the salute, Futrell began. “Sir, why did you want me to come meet the new recruits?” 

“Take a look for yourself, Grizzly.” said Templar, pointing to the recruits stepping out of the transport ships. 

As the new leejes were organizing into lines on the landing pad, Paladin was reading their designations off his datapad. “LS-567, Private Johnson. LS-58, Private Santiago. LS-636, Private Futrell…” He looked up at Grizzly as he said that last name. 

“What did you just say?” said Grizzly staring at Paladin before looking at the recruits. “Wait a minute…” he said under his breath as he walked over to a leej with ghostly waves painted on his armor. “Rob is that you?” 

“How’d you know it was me, Brian?” responded the recruit as he hugged Grizzly. “I joined the legion and they put me in the same company, sket, even the same squad as my big brother. Imagine that.” 

“I told you not to join the Legion, Rob.” said Grizzly, sounding frustrated “I got a good thing going here and I don’t need you screwing that up for me. Why do you always gotta follow me wherever I go?” 

“Well it wasn’t just me, Brian.” began Rob. 

“That’s Sergeant to you… wait, what do you mean it wasn’t just you?” asked Grizzly questioningly. 

“Goddamn it, Rob. I told you not to follow me into the Legion. I said this was my thing and that I was going to become the hero just like Brian and I find you right on my heels.” said a recruit coming over from the other transport ship. 

“You have got to be kidding me.” said Grizzly as he buried his helmet into his palm. 

“What in Oba’s name are you talking about, Brenden? This was Brian’s thing first and you just followed him into the Legion. Don’t act like this is your thing, you did the exact same thing I did.” said the first recruit, pointing a finger at the other one. 

“Well well, what do we have here?” said Templar, walking over. 

Grizzly gave a loud sign before saying “These are my two younger brothers, Brenden and Robert who apparently didn’t pay attention when I said I was going into the Legion alone.” He shot a look at them with that last word. 

“Hey, I always wanted to join the Legion, Brian. You tried to steal my dream away from me.” hissed Brenden. 

“Like sket it was, Brenden. You sat on your ass for two years and only after I graduated high school did mom make you stop wasting your life on hologames and do something with your life.” said Robert, pointing a finger in Brenden’s face. 

Just then, Templar heard another one of the recruits say to the recruit next to him. “Yo, why does the point have a toy sword?” 

“You might want to learn how to use private LCOM channels, Private.” said Templar, turning around. “And what was it you just said?” 

“Oh, nothing sir. It’s just that we heard that we would be under the command of an honored appointed officer of the House of Reason.” said the recruit, sounding like he was going to piss himself from the confrontation. 

“You are sorely mistaken, then.” said Templar, grabbing the sword Polis sword from his back and swinging it at the private’s head. The private tried to put up his arms as Templar brought the sword to a halt right as it touched the recruit’s helmet. “You are thinking of Major Gates. And there’s nothing honorable about being a good for nothing point. I am Captain Ruiz and am the one really in charge of this company no matter what some House of Reason sket says.” 

The private just stood there until tapping the edge of the sword with his gloved hand and accidentally cutting himself on it. “Yep, that’s a real sword alright.” he said quietly as he tried to cover the cut on his finger. 

“You’re Oba damned right it’s a real sword. Now all of you new recruits, I want you all to give me twenty laps around the base.” as they all moved to start running, he stopped the two younger Futrell brothers. “Not you two.” He resheathed his sword as the three Futrell brothers started arguing again. 

“I already got my callsign picked out.” began Brenden. “You can call me Grizz.” 

“You kelhorn!” said Grizzly, “That’s too similar to my callsign. You guys always steal everything from me. 

“Well I got an original callsign.” said Robert, “It’s Grizzly Wraith. See? It has a whole nother word in it.” 

“Rob, you just combined two of your favorite heroes from the Legion for that.” said Grizzly. 

“What is going on here, lads?” said Spectre as he walked up to the landing pad. 

“The Grizzly trio are arguing over who is the most original.” said Paladin. “Also Templar scared the new leejes sketless.” 

“You should have seen them, Spectre.” said Templar holding back laughter. “This one private was gonna piss himself. That’s why you always carry a sword, Paladin.” 

The three of them turned their attention back to the Futrell trio as they started to get even more heated. “ROB I SWEAR! I WILL KICK YOUR BUCKET INTO THE DIRT SO HARD IF YOU DON”T STOP COPYING ME!” yelled Brenden. 

“Copying you? You’re stealing my occupation and my callsign, Brenden. Both of you are copying me!” said Grizzly. 

“Okay…” said Templar, stepping in the middle of all of them. “Grizzly, you get to keep your callsign. LS-941, you can take the callsign ‘Grizz’, and LS-636, you’ll get the callsign ‘Grizzly W’. There, we got that settled. Now, why don’t you get your brothers settled into their new bunks, Grizzly.” 

“Fine.” said Grizzly, sounding like a pouting child. “Come on you cpy cats.” he said as all three of them stormed off. 

“Well, this’ll be interesting.” said Paladin. 

“You said it.” said Templar. 

“How long do you think it’ll take until Grizzly gives the other two punishment?” asked Spectre. 

“OBA DAMN IT, BRENDEN AND ROBERT!” Grizzly says over the LCOM. 

“Shouldn’t be too long.” responded Templar.

**Author's Note:**

> Very special guest editor goes to Sphinx. He did a damn good job.
> 
> This was inspired by the song Camouflage by Stan Ridgway and the cover by Sabaton.


End file.
